This project seeks to implement the recommendations included in Science Theme 6: "Impacts of climate variability and change on cultural resources" of the NECSC Strategic Science Agenda as a baseline for future efforts in the Northeast region. Tribal nations (Tribes) in the Northeast region face different challenges and opportunities regarding climate change impacts. Each Tribe is unique in terms of its cultural, economic, geographic, jurisdictional, social, and political situation. As sovereign governments exercising self-determination, Tribes will have greater capacity to adapt if they are able to determine how climate science research can serve their governance priorities. Fulfilling the Theme 6 recommendations of the NECSC Strategic Science Agenda, then, requires a project that respects the uniqueness and self-determination of Tribes in the Northeast region. This project will provide assessment for Tribes of strengths and vulnerabilities to climate change to better link NE CSC and other resources to address tribally identified issues.

The goals of this project are to support Tribal efforts to (A) create awareness about climate change impacts on Tribes in the Northeast region and (B) develop a set of working ideas about what capacities are needed for Tribes to adapt and to mitigate climate change impacts. The climate change impacts in (A) will range from threats to the continuance of Tribal cultural activities such as ceremonies to new challenges for Tribal mixed subsistence and commercial economies. The working ideas in (B) include both solutions that individual Tribes can pursue independently through the development of policies that primarily affect Tribal members and cooperative solutions that require Tribes to work with a range of national, regional and local governmental and nongovernmental partners. Project Outcomes: 1) Report on Recommending the Role of the NE CSC in supporting Tribal scenario development; 2) Review of existing published literature that fulfills the recommendations in the Strategic Science Agenda. This project will provide assessment for Tribes of strengths and vulnerabilities to climate change to better link NE CSC and other resources to address tribally identified issues.

We have recently been conducting tribal site visits. These specific results are being tracked and reported on under the "Supporting Tribal Relations" grant project, but we do have a few results we are looking at in this project: the tribal site visits have yielded a number of different activities, which range from the development of scenarios with the respective Tribes, to assisting with the development of climate education materials for community and K-12 initiatives. At this point of the project, the biggest issue we are looking at is how we begin to pull in other consortium members of NE CSC to not just learn about Tribes, but consider the development of partnerships and projects. The current base funded initatives were necessary to build towards that, but we are at a juncture where getting specific is the key.

Additionally, Project Director Caldwell is now participating in two advisory committee/boards, one for the Northern Arizona University's (NAU) Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) development of tribal leadership training, and the other with the new GLISA Advisory Board. These activities provide opportunities to learn more about Tribal needs around the country but also provide connections from the NE CSC work into these other initatives.

Presentations:

Chris Caldwell and Marie Schaefer, presented the webinar “Building Tribal Capacity for Climate Change Adaptation” as part of the 2014 NE CSC webinar series on December 3, 2014.

Chris Caldwell, attended “Donning Our Regalia: Maintaining Tradition in an Age of Modernity” workshop at University in British Columbia on December 8-11, 2014.

Chris Caldwell, Roundtable Discussions: Tribal Colleges/Universities. CMN Faculty were convened as part of an in-service day and the SDI model was presented to behin discussion on sustainability, and what it meant to CMN serving the community in many roles, including climate change issues. February 2015.

Chris Caldwell, Tribal and Community Colleges: Education, Equity, and Climate Change. Chris Caldwell attended and presented College of Menominee Nation Work on Tribes and Climate Change. National Adaptation Forum: Action today for a better tomorrow, St. Louis, MO. May 12-14, 2015.

Marie Schaefer, participated in "Researcher and Community Engagement: the Politics of Doing Research" panel. "Collaboration in Action: Building Bridges between Tribes and Climate Scientists," Society for Applied Anthropology, Pittsburgh, PA. March 26, 2015.

Chris Caldwell and Kyle Whyte co-facilitated a Tribes and climate change session at the Penn State led SCRiM Summer School August 15-19, 2016 (funded by Penn State SCRiM)

Marie Schaefer attended the Rising Voices IV meeting in Hawaii, July 5-9, 2016 to talk about the "Sustaining Indigenous Voices for the National Climate Assessment" efforts we have started with SKC and BIA, leveraged from the existing NE CSC work

Menominee Language Immersion group traveled to Hilo Hawaii to participate in a language summit event and engage with Native Hawaiian students from the Pacific CSC, which was funded by the Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Learning Fund. Greg Gauthier participated in this trip from our office with partial support from the NE CSC.

Chris Caldwell presented on April 5-7, 2017 at the Five Colleges Consortium Native American and Indigenous Studies Program, "Living Waters, Animate Lands Symposium" in Amherst, MA.

Rebecca Edler and Chris Caldwell presented at North Central Extension Water Summit May 23-25, 2017 “Building Collaboration Between State Land Grant Universities and Tribal Colleges and Universities” Haskell Indian Nations University, Lawrence, Kansas.

Director Caldwell will serve as a facilitator and team mentor the Tribal Climate Camp that will be offered by Affiliated Tribes of the Northwest Indians (ATNI), United Southern and Eastern Tribes (USET), and the Northwest Climate Science Center at Pack Forest, in Eatonville, Washington from July 31-August 4, 2017

Tribal Site Visits: Site Grand Traverse Bay Band of Odawa, and Little Traverse Bay Brand Indians in May. Worked to provide LTBB with beginning thoughts on development of curriculum for Tribal Youth Summer camp.

Tribal Site Visits: Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi and Little River Band of Ottaway, September 11-13.